1. Field of the Invention
The instant disclosure relates to a replaceable forehead liner; in particular, a replaceable forehead liner for a face mask of the continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) machine.
2. Description of the Related Art
The continuous positive airway pressure machine, or CPAP, is primarily used for treating sleep apnea. Sleep apnea is a sleep disorder characterized by the collapsing of soft tissues around the throat area, which can obstruct breathing during sleep. Individuals with sleep apnea experience difficulty in breathing, and may lead to suffocation in severe cases. Using CPAP, the patient wears a mask that is connected to an air pump. The air pump is delivering pressurized air, which keeps the person's airway open for unobstructed breathing.
To maintain pressurized air, the mask is sealed on the face. To reduce skin irritation, a flexible liner is used for the mask.
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the forehead liner 1a is clipped to the mask 2a. The forehead liner 1a comprises a support arm 11a and two forehead cushions 12a. The forehead cushions 12a clips to the support arm 11a by two quick-clip balls 121a. Similarly, the support arm 11a uses a quick-clip 111a to clip onto the mask 2a. However, the quick-clip features may be insecure; plus, excessive pressure tends to concentrate around the quick-clip regions in causing discomfort to the user.
FIG. 3 shows another forehead liner 1b with internal openings 11b in providing flexibility. A T-shaped clipping portion 12b forms off the top of the forehead liner 1b for clipping to the mask 2a (not shown). However, the clipping portion 12b has a small contact area, which can clip insecurely. With the hollow openings 11b, the forehead liner 1b is weaker structurally in relieving the excessive pressure.
A third typical forehead liner 1c is shown in FIG. 4 with structural similarity to the previous example. Namely, the forehead liner 1c comprises internal openings 11c and a T-shaped clipping portion 12c. Functionally, the forehead liner 1c has similar disadvantages as the forehead liner discussed previously.
FIGS. 5 and 6 illustrate a fourth type forehead liner 1d having a support arm 11d with two forehead cushions 12d. Two clipping portions 111d protrude off the top of the support arm 11d for clipping to the mask (not shown). The forehead cushions 12d can be formed integrally with the support arm 11d. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 7, the forehead cushion 12d′ can be a separate piece for clipping to the support arm 11d. However, the slanted clipping portions 111d do not clip easily and are weaker structurally. As a separate unit, the forehead cushion 12d′ is less effective in dispersing applied pressure to the user.
To address the above issues, the inventor proposes the following solution.